In a rotary printing press, the inking of the plate cylinder is effected, from an ink duct, through the intermediary of a series of rollers turning in mutual contact. Some of these rollers may also execute a reciprocating movement along their axis of rotation, and in this case are called "slide tables". The other intermediate rollers are called "inking rollers". Each inking roller is therefore in contact with two other cylinders, and these cylinders may be either the ink take-up roller, or the slide tables, or the plate cylinder. During the operation of the press, the force with which each inking roller comes into contact with the other cylinders must be monitored precisely. During shutdown of the machine, it is possible under these conditions for a marking of the rollers or of the plate cylinder at the level of the corresponding contact generatrices to occur. To overcome this disadvantage, devices have already been proposed which permit the movement of the axis of each inking roller in order to move the inking roller away from at least one of the two rollers with which it normally comes into contact, during shutdown of the machine.
One such known device, which permits such a movement of the inking roller, consists in mounting the inking roller pivotally about the axis of rotation of the slide table with which it is in contact. The inking roller is then mounted at each end, through the intermediary of rotary bearings, on a solid rigid piece itself mounted rotatably about the fixed bearing of the corresponding slide table.
It will be appreciated that such a mechanical assembly comprises a large number of rigid and solid pieces, difficult to machine and consequently costly. On the other hand, since the length of the rollers is considerable, there is a danger that the pivoting of the two pieces arranged at the two ends will not be perfectly simultaneous, thus involving a danger of the mechanical assembly jamming. On the other hand, these pivoting pieces must be well adjusted on the fixed bearings in order to prevent the longitudinal movements of the rollers entrained by the reciprocating movements of the table, and in this case fouling of the joints of the pivoting pieces by ink and danger of jamming rapidly occurs.